Getting Turbo for automatic FRS.
 

Hi, I just got my Ultramarine FRS a week ago. I have the TRD exhaust system installed. I planned on getting a turbo like Full blown I saw a video that with that turbo it can hit 400 Horse. Turbo + Installation will run about $6,000. The only thing I'm worried about is that I wont be using my car for racing but its something I want to have for fun while driving even my frs is Automatic. My big question is that if I drive my car with the turbo on a daily basis does it shorten the length of my engine life? I only have 100 miles on my engine right now. Thanks in advance your help will most likely decide if i will get a turbo. Thank you very much in advanced.

yes

Be prepared for the worst. If $6k is your budget have spare funds on the side if anything goes wrong. Remember this will absolutely void your power train warranty. I literally just bought my SBD V2 turbo kit this past Thursday for my automatic and I'm as nervous as you. However, I have just under 30k miles driven in mine...it's definitely time for a change..

If you're going to boost the car (turbo) then have funds set aside to replace the engine and transmission, just in case they fail. That old phrase "you have to pay to play" comes to mind

Think about it...you will be running the car at a level that the engine and transmission were not designed for. There have been post around here about engine failures even in non-boosted (stock) rides! Why boost it and then have to worry each time you take it out that its going to self-destruct.


I say enjoy your new car and warranty by keep the engine stock, unless you have money to burn.

Once the warranty is up then turbo it. I say all this assuming you have a second car to drive around while you work on this one.

Yes sir, as everyone else said you're putting additional stress on your engine. It really depends on whether or not you want to roll the dice every time you go for a drive. For many people on this forum it's worth the risk, for other's it's not. It all depends on your own personal preference, funds, and circumstances.

Get a wide band to monitor a/f and a boost gauge. No gauges is playing with fire.

I had my Ultramarine for a long time. My B2B warranty is up and I'm no where near the mileage (22k). Thought about FI, read about FI and tried a road coarse stock. Not going FI, this car is more fun in the curves than my motorcycle. I will be upgrading the tranny as I love manual mode and the paddle shifters.

400hp is a lot. I believe the auto trans can handle up to 300 lb/ft of torque but I'd suggest you try researching that topic on your own. Everyone's experience is different.

I'd recommend getting the turbo kit and aiming for 300whp first. This is a pretty common power level for turbo'd FRSs, while there are much fewer people running 400. If you still feel as though you want more power, you can always move up to 400whp later on. Just keep in mind that this will probably require E85 (which may be common in Ohio, but is impossible to find here in New Jersey).

As far as reliability goes: in my experience 250-300whp is very reliable, 300-350whp is potentially risky, and at 350whp+ you should probably invest in another daily driver just in case lol

Completely agree. The car with 300 is a blast to drive, and with the turbo spooling up a storm at 2500rpm. The car has so much needed low-end torque. Do I find myself hit redline all the time?, Nope. But when I want it or need it, it's there.

I'm kicking around those ideas myself but I don't necessarily want that much horsepower on my daily drive. What to do? My FR-S is also an automatic so I'd be interested in people's opinions.

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The question that always comes to my mind is why jump straight from stock power (160-170whp) straight to 400whp? It's an incredible leap, not just in terms of how terrifyingly fast it's going to be in a straight line, but also in terms of all the supporting modifications you will need.

You won't be able to drive it on the standard tires, or even "good" tires, you'll need great tires (and wide ones) to approach having some traction. Your suspension will also need to be massaged to keep up. Brakes should be looked at.

That 400whp won't be on pump gas, either. You will be tethered to e85 pumps.

I'll always recommend going in stages on the power unless you've already done it before and you know what you are getting into. Going too far can lead to the opposite of what you want, which is I assume to enjoy driving the car more. Not less.

Nicely put. I'm in that boat with a new "relatively" stock ride and have zero desire to get to 400hp. After a bit you start breaking stuff lol. For me, around 250whp is the magic number. Keeps things manageable and still a blast to drive. Like a friend of mine says, "Better to drive a slow car fast, than a fast car slow".

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I'm thinking about getting a turbo from a reliable shop here in ATL down the road with a terrific price of 4k installed and dyno tuned. This turbo bumps power from 155whp/137wtq to 275whp/237wtq. I realize the power loss on the dyno is equal to about 22% for the auto too. 120whp/100wtq gain is frigging insane for 4k if you ask me.

I tend to agree lol

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If it's ur only car, don't.

These were my thoughts exactly. I'm going to be having the SBD V2 kit installed fully catless in about 3 weeks on 93 octane. I expect to hit about 280whp or so with my automatic. I have 9.75" heavyish wide wheels in the rear on 245/40 on good summer tires. That power + auto + heavy wheels will probably feel perfect and not overbearing or scary by any means. I'll report back once I have first hand experience.

That was always my thoughts. Much beyond 300whp and you can expect to start breaking things, axles and the like. I myself will be looking at a supercharger because the power is more linear and while E85 is around, I'd rather not have to burn a quarter tank just to fill up. My goal is around 200-250whp. That's fine for me.

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IMO you wont appreciate the boosted 86 nearly as much without having driven it NA for long

This kit was made for an auto. @nelsmar may have the details on the trans upgrades

https://scontent-lax3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...46&oe=56609328

So you were having buyers remorse because you bought an automatic, and you were thinking about trading it in for a manual. Now you want to slap on 400 horses, which runs the risk of blowing the engine, and brings the possibility of unnecessary costs if shit goes wrong.

I think you should trade in the car for a different (faster?) car. All this that you want to do does not make much sense. But hey at the end of the day it's your money. Good luck :)

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That buyer remorse is now history. I will keep the car and add more whp to it. I was wrong with 400horse thats a dream after reading a loy about turbo/superchargers. I'm deciding either fullblown or Vortech most people advice wait till after the 30k warranty.

That's an amazing deal. The only drawback is if anything goes wrong with the turbo, you will have to bring it to same shop to get if fixed.

On the other hand, if you installed it yourself, you can usually diagnose what the problem is pretty quickly because you'd be much more familiar with the turbo kit (since you installed it yourself)